Liquid automatic dishwasher detergent compositions, both aqueous and nonaqueous, have recently received much attention, and the aqueous products have achieved commercial popularity.
The acceptance and popularity of the liquid formulations as compared to the more conventional powder products stems from the convenience and performance of the liquid products. However, even the best of the currently available liquid formulations still suffer from two major problems, product phase instability and bottle residue, and to some extent cup leakage from the dispenser cup of the automatic dishwashing machine.
Representative of the relevant patent art in this area, mention is made of Rek, U.S. Pat. No. 4,556,504; Bush, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,226,736; Ulrich, U.S. Pat. No. 4,431,559; Sabatelli, U.S. Pat. No. 4,147,650; Paucot, U.S. Pat. No. 4,079,015; Leikhem, U.S. Pat. No. 4,116,849; Milora, U.S. Pat. No. 4,521,332; Jones, U.S. Pat. No. 4,597,889; Heile, U.S. Pat. No. 4,512,908; Laitem, U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,748; Sabatelli, U.S. Pat. No. 3,579,455; Hynam, U.S. Pat. No. 3,684,722: other patents relating to thickened detergent compositions include U.S. Pat. No. 3,985,668; U.K. Patent Applications GB 2,116,199A and GB 2,140,450A; U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,487; U.S. Pat. No. 4,752,409 (Drapier, et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,801,395 (Drapier, et al.); U.S. Pat. No. 4,801,395 (Drapier, et al.). Commonly assigned co-pending patents include, for example, Ser. No. 204,476 filed Jun. 9, 1988, abandoned; Ser. No. 924,385, filed Oct. 29, 1986 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,226; Ser. No. 323,138, filed Mar. 13, 1989 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,445; Ser. No. 087,836, filed Aug. 21, 1987 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,836,946; Ser. No. 328,716, filed Mar. 27, 1989, pending; Ser. No. 323,137, filed Mar. 13, 1989 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,968,446; Ser. No. 323,134, filed Mar. 13, 1989 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,970,016.
The present invention provides a solution to the above problems.